The Archives

The collection of all scholarly commentary on law, economics, and more

Showing archive for:  “Corporate Governance”

The Demise of Property Rights Has Been Greatly Exaggerated …

My colleague Tom Hazlett (George Mason University) has a characteristically thoughtful and provocative column in the Financial Times on the recent Clearwire joint venture and what it tells us about the “innovation commons” and current public policy debates such as network neutrality, spectrum property rights, and municipal wi-fi. Here’s an excerpt: Clearwire-Sprint-Intel-Google-Comcast-TimeWarner-McCaw blasts away barriers ... The Demise of Property Rights Has Been Greatly Exaggerated …

Lipton on Shareholder Primacy

It should be no surprise that the inventor of the poison pill is pro-director, but Marty Lipton’s remarks at a June 25 conference at the University of Minnesota Law School left no doubt that he truly believes in his heart of hearts that we’re better off with strong, unencumbered boards. According to the WSJ’s deals ... Lipton on Shareholder Primacy

Conference: The Economics and Law of the Entrepreneur

The Searle Center on Law, Regulation and Economic Growth at Northwestern University School of Law is continuing its excellent run of conferences with an event on June 18th-19th organized by Daniel Spulber centering around some new (and very interesting looking) papers on economic and legal issues involving entrepreneur and discuss high quality research relevant to ... Conference: The Economics and Law of the Entrepreneur

Dammit – DC Madam Hangs Herself

The DC Madam killed herself today, about a week after being found guilty by a jury on prostitution-related charges of money-laundering (among other things). Among her alleged clients are Louisiana Senator David Vitter, former U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Randall Tobias, and Harlan K. Ullman, a senior associate with the Center for Strategic and International Studies, ... Dammit – DC Madam Hangs Herself

Delaware is winning the LLC race.

Dammann and Schundeln have a new paper up on SSRN entitled “Where are Limited Liability Companies Formed? An Empirical Analysis” (see here) that examines the state of formation choice of 64,000+ LLCs. Here’s the abstract: We empirically study the incorporation choices or, more accurately: formation choice, of limited liability companies. Most of the firms in ... Delaware is winning the LLC race.

GE "Slashes" Earnings: Free Advice from Nowicki for GE Exec. Jeffrey Immelt!

The Financial Times reported yesterday that an embarrassed GE CEO Jeffrey Immelt had to tell GE shareholders that the 10% growth in earnings for 2008 that he had promised analysts in March was not going to be possible.  GE missed its quarterly forecasts and halved its 2008 forecast to 5% growth in earnings (as opposed ... GE "Slashes" Earnings: Free Advice from Nowicki for GE Exec. Jeffrey Immelt!

Merger Agreements, “Material Adverse Changes,” and Delaware Vice Chancellor Leo Strine’s Obsession With Keira Knightley

I am blogging today from the Tulane Corporate Law Institute, here in New Orleans, at the stunning Westin Hotel. I am set to appear on the Private Equity panel tomorrow, where I will talk about, among other things, the implications of 2007’s string of failed private equity deals.  In preparation for this conference, I drafted a ... Merger Agreements, “Material Adverse Changes,” and Delaware Vice Chancellor Leo Strine’s Obsession With Keira Knightley

Regulate in Haste, Repent in Leisure: Reforming the Financial Regulatory Scheme

Today, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson is set to present some comments about the Treasury’s Blueprint for Financial Regulatory Reform, released on Saturday.  (A summary of the proposal is here.) The summary of the proposal report provides:  “In this report, Treasury presents a series of “short-term” and “intermediate-term” recommendations that could immediately improve and reform the ... Regulate in Haste, Repent in Leisure: Reforming the Financial Regulatory Scheme

Tulane Corporate Law Institute

Tulane’s annual “Corporate Law Institute” is coming up!  The conference – widely viewed as the must-attend deal conference of the year is April 3 and 4 (only two weeks away). The roster for this year’s conference reads like a who’s who of the deal world, with a range of Delaware jurists, investment bankers, top lawyers, ... Tulane Corporate Law Institute

Public Choice and the Law Textbook

Todd Zywicki and Maxwell Stearns have a draft of their new textbook, “Public Choice Concepts and Applications in the Law,” available for review for profs that are interested in teaching with the manuscript this Fall 2008 or Spring 2009 term (the book is due to be published in 2009).  The book is designed for law ... Public Choice and the Law Textbook

Microsoft Bids for Yahoo – Yahoo’s Board Will Respond

Microsoft has made a bid for Yahoo, and the Yahoo board of directors is anticipated to use the Nancy Reagan “Just Say No†defense.  I feel like I’m back in the 1980s merger boom. Several thoughts: 1.  Rumor has it we are in a recession.  It is likely then that Yahoo stock is currently trading at ... Microsoft Bids for Yahoo – Yahoo’s Board Will Respond

Is Britney the QWERTY Keyboard of Pop Culture?

I thought I would be safe in church. I thought I could avoid her there. But no, the minister had to mention Britney Spears during the sermon Sunday morning. I think the reference had something to do with keeping perspective and the ridiculousness of a motorcade escort to UCLA medical center. I’m not really sure. ... Is Britney the QWERTY Keyboard of Pop Culture?